Is it Weird Out There ....?: ...Or is it just me?

Which part of the supermarket vegetable department should be rated "R"? What do you do if you're sitting in the driveway with a lawn mower on your lap when the neighbor's nasty pit bull appears? Should the death penalty be abolished, except for people who drive too slowly in the passing lane? Why do Iowa farmers hide their hogs and daughters every presidential election year? What do Colfax Mingo, Pablo McHorowitz and Marguarita Con-Tequila have in common? Life can throw a lot of questions, situations and decisions at a person, some more serious than others. Columnist Mike Deupree of The Cedar Rapids Gazette has been making observations on many of them for more than 20 years, often evoking a chuckle and from time to time stimulating a thought or two. Collected here are some of those observations, on topics ranging from the ACLU to zoology.

Mike Deupree has worked in the newspaper business since 1969 as a sportswriter, reporter, editor, editorial writer, movie reviewer and, for the past 20 years, as a columnist for the Cedar Rapids (Ia.) Gazette. His work has four times won top honors in the annual competition of the Iowa Newspaper Association and also has been honored by the Associated Press Managing Editors, the American Society of Newspaper Editors and the National Society of Newspaper Columnists. Some of his columns have been distributed by the New York Times News Service. Deupree lives in suburban Shueyville, Iowa, with his wife, Kathy, and at least one cat.